18

SUNDAY

Since 1991, the Washington Performing Arts Society’s Eric Torain has produced annual Martin Luther King Jr. birthday concerts featuring 130 area vocalists who come together as the WPAS Women of the Gospel Mass Choir. This year’s ambitious program, “Sisters in Song,” will offer highlights from the historical spectrum of woman-identified sacred music: spirituals, ’40s-era Mahalia Jackson, ’70s-era Shirley Caesar, and a number of modern compositions. While the syllable-stretching by the choir and guest vocalists Tramaine Hawkins and former Sounds of Blackness diva Ann Nesby are sure to impress, the program’s secret weapon will be the music directors selected by Torain. With the Dance Institute of Washington at 7 p.m. at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. $12-40. (202) 467-4600. (SK)